from VCCA Journal, Volume 3, Number 2, Fall/Winter 1988, 37-39
© Copyright 1988 VCCA Journal
Since 1960, the "internationalization" of the Metropolitan Miami Area has taken place over a time period that roughly parallels the growth of Miami-Dade Community College (M-DCC). From its inception, Miami-Dade has added international dimensions to its programming reflecting the changing needs of its community. In 1985, a formal M-DCC International Mission Study was completed under the leadership of Dr. Piedad F. Robertson then M-DCC Vice-President for Education and currently the President of Bunker Hill Community College in Boston, Massachusetts. The International Mission Statement simply put is:
A community college should be a door to global communication and awareness. Understanding global interdependency in our increasingly complex societies is the key to economic, social, and cultural development. Global education can no longer be for a small elite; it must be an integral part of every student's education. Community colleges, because of their closeness to their communities, are uniquely suited to educate for global understanding.
The entire document provided a college-wide basis to deliberately plan for future activities. This paper was completed at the time when national and international surveys documented the weakness of American high school and college students in basic geography. Over 40% of the students could not locate the United States or Brazil on a world map.
In spite of these polls and surveys, many college personnel felt international activities and the community college mission were mutually exclusive; consequently, they road-blocked efforts to increase international awareness. This provincial viewpoint is an obstacle to international education shared by many educational institutions. On the other hand, personnel who had promoted international growth of campus activities functioned in somewhat isolated pockets. Up to this point, these individuals lacked the official sanctions expressed in college-wide goals and objectives which delineated international responsibility.
The International Mission Study provided a philosophy or rationale that addressed the major movements within international education. Its time had come. Indeed, the Study explored recent national and state government conclusions which expressed the need for a strong effort to educate the citizenry in global issues if the United States hopes to continue sharing global economic, political, and social leadership roles. As a result, Miami-Dade undertook a needs assessment of community and business leaders surveying international issues and education priorities. One of the immediate results of the assessment was Miami-Dade Community College's explicit commitment to service growing international concerns by becoming more pro-active. The development of a rationale to continue and expand the components of international education provided direction into the next century.
International Education with its many facets--foreign language study, overseas academic programs, global curriculum, foreign student programs, faculty and student exchanges, technical assistance, and linkages/services to business and industry--is being perceived as a responsibility of higher education by both state and federal government leaders. Increased competition in the world market place has moved the United States off center. This situation offers both practical and philosophical reasons for assuring that our citizens become more aware of world events, fostering an understanding of the community and its international involvement. The ability to learn to communicate and work more effectively with peoples of other nations will become increasingly necessary as our world shrinks.
Students will have to understand the interrelated nature of world problems and the effect on their lives, or they will have a difficult time taking their place in the ever-changing world. For example, agriculture is heavily dependent on international trade. Today, one in three acres of farm production is exported. Further, one in five jobs in the United States is related to the international marketplace and those numbers are projected to reach one in three by the end of this century. Local communities in the United States must provide a much broader global view to their citizens or suffer the consequences of placing their sons and daughters in a disadvantaged position for future economic and political issues. One avenue to increase global awareness is to revisit higher education's curriculum with an eye to adding an international perspective.
The M-DCC International Mission Study discussed how academic programs can be constructed so as to provide opportunities for students to acquire a more comprehensive world view. One approach is to offer specific international courses such as international relations, comparative government, international banking, business and marketing. Another approach is to address the dominant issues which affect the international community-- ecological, sociological, political, demographic, scientific, artistic--within existing courses. Such expansion within the curriculum can furnish students with considerable exposure to international perspectives and other cultures.
To a degree, Miami-Dade Community College has incorporated these approaches. Credit and non-credit courses such as international banking and business, comparative religion and politics, and foreign languages from Portuguese to Japanese are fairly visible indicators of one delivery system. By virtue of the way courses are set-up, this method still offers limited exposure to the overall college population. On the other hand, the general education core courses (Energy in the Natural Environment, The Social Environment, The Individual in Transition and Humanities) required of every degree-seeking student at M-DCC incorporate materials relevant to international issues affecting the world community and provide students a common core in international education. And yet, representatives from the faculty, administration and staff are voicing the need to review the college's course work including the core component with one of the objectives being to strengthen the internationalization of the present curriculum.
At Miami-Dade, the level of international sophistication of the personnel involved is an integral part for the ultimate development and implementation of such global programs. Acknowledging that faculty and staff should be encouraged to participate in international exchanges or development seminars is crucial. Development opportunities that highlight international topics create room for renewed interest in international issues and a depth of global understanding that can only be acquired through such activities. Although basic, faculty motivation must be present in any efforts to internationalize the curriculum.
In the end, it is the commitment of community college administration to the concept of global understanding that brings about internationalization as an institutional policy.
Karen A. Paiva is Associate District Director of Academic Programs at Miami-Dade Community College. She administrates and brokers Collegewide International Education and Development activities among M-DCC's four campuses.